


Miraculous: Tales of Night Howl

by Kaerralind



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Multi, OC Story, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-29
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2018-11-21 03:03:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11348523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaerralind/pseuds/Kaerralind
Summary: There's a new hero in the city of Paris all the way from America looking for something he lost and sought out Ladybug and Chat Noir to help him in his duty.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I have long hiatuses with this story, so I'm sorry if it goes a while without an update.  
> NOTE:  
> I DO NOT CLAIM ANY OF THE CANON CHARACTERS IN THIS STORY, ONLY THE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS THAT I'VE COME UP WITH.

“Good morning class, today we have a new student joining us all the way from the United States of America. Please allow him a moment to introduce himself.”

Chatter broke out throughout the class before silencing once more as the door to the classroom opened and a young man wearing blue jeans, a grey shirt and a red plaid overshirt walked in.

“Hello,” started the boy, rough with his French, “My name is Isaac Solomon, I am a foreign exchange student from America and I hope to learn many things during my time here.”

“Thank you, Isaac, you can sit next to Nathaniel since it’s the only seat left available.”

“Yes Miss,” The boy replied as he started up the aisle, his eyes locking onto a particular bluebell eyed girl sitting in the second row. He gave a slight smirk before continuing up the steps to sit by a silent redhead who already had his face buried in his sketchbook.

“Alright class, today we’re going to go over chapter three in your textbooks and you’ll do a short essay on the deeper meaning.” The teacher explained as she started teaching.

Throughout the class, however, Isaac kept glancing down at the girl in the second row. He was having a hard time keeping his attention on his studies as she and the girl next to her whispered amongst themselves. With each whisper, he became more curious and did his best to listen to what they were saying, but being in the back of the class made it rather difficult. His focus shifted to the redhead next to him when he noticed him staring about as much as he was and gave a sheepish smile as the bell rang.

“Okay everyone, if you haven’t finished your essays it’s due tomorrow as homework. I’ll see you after lunch.” Miss Bustier said as she watched the students pick up their things and file out of the room.

“I noticed you staring at Marinette.” The redhead said quietly beside him as they packed up. “She’s really beautiful, isn’t she?”

Isaac could tell by the smile on the other boy’s face that he clearly liked the girl, “She is, I can’t deny that. But I’m not going to chase after someone I know I’ll never get.” He replied with a slight shake of his head. “I’m Isaac,” He added, holding his hand out to shake.

The redhead returned a smile and took his hand, shaking it slightly. “Nathaniel, it’s nice to meet you.” He stated before continuing to pack his things. “You really came all the way from America?”

“Of course he did! Didn’t you listen to his introduction? Oh wait, you probably buried your face in that stupid sketchbook of yours, drawing your gross fantasies again.” A blonde girl quipped, laughing pompously afterwards.

Nathaniel frowned, pulled his bag over his shoulder, and hurried down the steps before heading out of the room. Isaac was a bit surprised at this act, and yet not. He could feel something stirring within in, but quelled it to speak.

“There was no need to be rude, you know. He was just asking a question.” Isaac retorted before walking away from the situation completely, bag in hand.

“Wow, what a royal pain!” A voice stated from his overshirt.

Isaac chuckled a bit and nodded, “Yeah, apparently. Guess I have a lot to learn from this school. But at least I know who to look out for.”

“Who are you talking to?” The new student nearly jumped from his skin at the sudden question and turned quickly to see Nathaniel on a bench with his lunch.

“Geez, Nathaniel, you scared me.” He stated, placing a hand over his heart. “I was just talking to myself really. Who was that girl anyway? Is she always like that?”

There was a bit of laughter from behind him, causing a shiver to go up his spine. He didn’t even have to turn around to know who it was. Marinette. He turned, though, and saw both her and the other girl she sat next to, giggling up a storm at his question.

“Boy, that girl is a she-devil. Her name is Chloé, but don’t let her try and butter you up. I wouldn’t give her the time of day; she so isn’t worth it.” The other girl stated before placing a hand on her hips and holding the other one out. “I’m Alya, writer of the school blog.”

“You!” Isaac exclaimed all of a sudden, taking the girl’s hand and shaking it excitedly. “You’re the one who runs the Ladyblog!”

Alya looked shocked for a moment before grinning madly. “You know it?”

“Of course I do! It’s the best way to see what Ladybug and Chat Noir are doing! They’re so amazing! I can’t wait to meet them while I’m here.” He stated, still rather excited.

“Well if you want to meet them, you could tag along with me sometime. I video everything I can for the blog, and when an Akuma springs up, they’re not far behind.” Alya replied, seeming quite proud.

“Don’t you think that’s a little dangerous, Alya? Even you shouldn’t be chasing after the Akumas like that. Remember the Pharaoh? You almost got sacrificed!” Marinette scolded before Isaac had a chance to say anything in reply. To him though, her voice sounded like a chorus of beautiful church bells.

Isaac was completely distracted by the girl as she spoke, he wasn’t even sure what she was saying anymore, his mind wandering before he was suddenly elbowed in the side by the redhead who raised an eyebrow at him and brought him back to reality.

“Right um, of course, it’s dangerous, but Alya’s been doing this for a while now, so I think it’ll be safe if I go just once.” He spoke, though the look on Marinette’s face made him feel a little bad. He didn’t think she’d worry so much about someone she’d just met.

“Then it’s settled! I’ll make sure to get you when an Akuma pops up. You could be my assistant for that video.”

Isaac nodded and Marinette let out a groan of disbelief before they all sat down to eat their lunches. It was a nice change of pace for once, relaxing and fun. Not like what he was used to back home at all. There was always something going on at home and he normally never got a chance to rest. Throughout lunch, though, he couldn’t help but watch the raven haired girl.

The rest of the day was similar, doing classwork, watching Marinette, meeting classmates, watching Marinette, listening to Chloé complain about not spending enough money on clothes, and so on. His first day of school was interesting, to say the least. It was almost normal for him, but he knew the normalcy could only last for so long before it changed.

“Everything alright?” Nathaniel whispered towards the end of the class.

“Huh? Oh, yeah. Everything’s fine. Everything just seems different here. It’s so calm.” Isaac replied, resting his head on his arms.

The redhead chuckled a bit. “It’s calm now, just you wait until an Akuma shows up, or until Chloé goes crazy again.”

“How often do these Akuma appear anyway?” He questioned.

“Every few days. It’s calmed down a lot since our class got cycled through.”

“What do you mean by that?” Isaac asked, sitting up a bit, clearly interested.

Nathaniel’s face fell a bit and he looked down a bit ashamed. “Everyone in our class has been an Akuma, save for Marinette and Adrien. Though Marinette’s too pure to become one, I think. I can’t see Adrien becoming one either. But even I’ve been Akumatized, and Alya too. Everyone has.”

“Adrien?”

“Oh yeah, that’s right. He’s not here today because of a photoshoot, at least that’s what I heard from Marinette this morning.” He sighed, before recomposing himself. “He sits next to Nino in the front row, and in front of Marinette. Anyway, things seemed to have calmed down a lot since we’ve all been cycled through, now it kind of happens to other kids in the school, but it’s kind of rare now. It seems like the Akumas are outside of school now.”

Nathaniel’s words made Isaac think, he needed to see Adrien to be certain. “How long’s it been since an attack?”

“A few days, so there’s bound to be one soon. It’s a good thing you gave Alya your number, she’ll be sure to call you immediately when one shows up unless you’re with her.”

The bell rang before Isaac could reply and everyone left pretty quickly, leaving him to go off on his own. Nathaniel had told him he had something to do so he had to hurry off, and since he hadn’t made other friends, he was on his own. The girls apparently had something else to do as well, but he was fine by himself. It was remarkably normal for him.

“What a day. You’re learning all kinds of things already!” The small voice came from his shirt again.

“Yeah, well it seems like I found someone who knows a lot about the situation,” Isaac answered.

“You’re really going to chase after them like this, though? Are you sure?”

“It’s not like I have a choice right now. I can’t risk him knowing I’m here. Not yet. If he finds out, who knows what he’ll do. It’s dangerous as it is, we don’t need to make it worse.” He explained, reminding the voice.

He was halfway home when there was a loud crash and several screams from a few blocks over.

“I think we got lucky today,” Isaac stated, rushing off towards the noise. His phone started ringing as he ran and answered quickly. “Yeah, I’m on my way, it’s kind of hard to ignore the screaming. I’ll be there in a moment.”

Thankfully he was a fast runner and got to the scene just as the red and black-clad heroine zipped across the sky.

“Alya!” He called when he caught up to the brunette who was already filming.

“Hey there Ladyblog! Alya here with another Akuma attack. Ladybug just showed up and Chat Noir can’t be far behind. Today’s a special treat because I have an assistant with me. So stay connected as we watch this unravel!” The girl stated expertly. The young man had to admit she was rather good at what she did.

“Alya, look out!” Isaac yelled suddenly, practically tackling the vlogger out of the way of a car that had been tossed aside from the Akuma, the phone sliding away.

“My phone!” She cried, trying to reach for it.

Isaac was quick to get up and dash for it, dodging more debris that was being flung about. “This way Alya!” He said when he reached her, pulling her along with him.

“But the Akuma!”

“You’ll get a good view, I promise!” He retorted as he led the girl to a much safer spot where they could see everything.

“Sorry about that! We got into a bit of a mess back there, but we’re back and with a better view than before!” Alya spouted, phone camera pointed at the scene.

Isaac would be lying if he had said he was out of breath, dodging things like that wasn’t something he was new to, not that he’d admit that so readily.

“Finally! Chat Noir has appeared to help his Lady!” Alya practically cheered.

The auburn haired teen let out a sigh and relaxed a bit as he watched the duo work their magic. They were nearly flawless with their movements together and he couldn’t help but smile. A Cat and a Ladybug, who knew they’d make such a good team? Throughout the fight, there were some close calls, but in the end, they were victorious and the rush of ladybugs around the city was a sight to see.

“Ladybug! Chat Noir! Can I have a quick interview for the blog?” Alya questioned once the fight was done.

“I’d love to, but-” Ladybug paused as she locked eyes with Isaac, who gave a smile. The same bluebell eyes that he was so familiar with were staring back at him. “I have to go before my identity is revealed!” She said, zipping off in a hurry. Chat Noir, of course, had already left to, having used his ability earlier in the fight, he didn’t have the luxury of sticking around.

“That’s all for now, until next time!” Alya finished, signing off the video before turning to Isaac. “Okay, you have to tell me. Do you and Ladybug know each other?”

“What? No!” Isaac replied quickly. “I just, I don’t know.” He felt a tiny elbow against his rib.

“Boy, there’s something going on there. Do you have a thing for our heroine?”

The teen could feel silent laughter coming from his shirt and gave a small frown. “Of course not. It’s just admiration. It’s not every day you meet a superhero after all.” He replied.

“Right, okay. I’ll totally believe you this time, but next time you’re not going to get out of it.” She said, hands on her hips.

Isaac couldn’t help but laugh a bit. “I’m going to go home now.” He said, shaking his head. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He added as he hurried off.

“Happy now? You met her. Can we get over this now?”

“Her? Yes. Him? No. I have to be sure, Canaa.” He replied, pulling his overshirt open a bit to look at the small creature.

“Right, because you’re definitely enamoured by the both of them.” The creature stated.

“I’m not enamoured.”

“And I’m not a wolf. Just admit it!”

“I’ll admit it when you admit you’re enamoured with Darnner.”

“Hey now, that’s not fair! Darnner and I are made for one another! Just like you and Dragon Wing.”

It was impossible for Isaac to retort with anything after that because he knew it was true and the thought of it only made him miss home that much more.

“Sorry, I know, I’m not supposed to bring them up when we’re here. It’s an important mission after all.”

“It’s alright. It’ll take a while to get used to this place. For now, we need to make the best of it. Next time an Akuma shows up, though, I’m not going to sit on the sidelines. Especially if he’s involved. Those Akuma will be much stronger than what they deal with normally and if they team up, who knows what could happen.”

The two fell into silence as they reached home, A top floor apartment not too far from the park. He’d have gotten there sooner, but with the Akuma situation and talking to Canaa, he’d taken a wrong turn and gotten lost.

“Here’s hoping he’ll be at school tomorrow.” He murmured to himself as he fell into his bed, watching out the window, eventually falling asleep.

“Adrikins!” Chloé shouted as a blonde haired, green eyed teen walked into the classroom the next morning. “I missed you yesterday!”

Isaac groaned at the girl’s voice, it was too high-pitched so early in the morning. After being plagued with nightmares throughout the night, he hadn’t gotten much sleep and it was starting to get annoying. He was grumpy and tired and he really just wanted the girl to silence herself.

“Hey dude, you missed the big introduction yesterday. We got a new classmate. He’s in the back.” A boy with a blue shirt and headphones stated.

“New classmate?” The blonde repeated slightly, looking toward the back of the room where Isaac sat.

“Oh don’t bother with him, Adrien, he’s not important.” Chloé sneered. Isaac rolled his eyes.

Adrien, on the other hand, started up the stairs and held out a hand. “Adrien Agreste, it’s nice to meet you.”

Isaac hesitated for a moment and reached out, his eyes locking onto a ring that the other teen wore before shaking his hand. “Isaac Solomon.” He replied with a smile. He’d found him. There was no mistaking it.

“Maybe we could all get smoothies or something at lunch or something?” The boy, whom Isaac assumed to be Nino, suggested.

“That sounds amazing,” Adrian said as he pulled his hand away.

“I’d like that as well,” Isaac replied, nudging Nathaniel a bit. “Nathaniel should come to. It’d be fun.”

“Only if Alya and Marinette are invited too.” The redhead added, not looking away from his sketchbook.

“Then it’s settled. Smoothies for lunch.” Nino confirmed, ticking away on his phone. Isaac guessed that he was sharing the information with the others.

After a while, class started, Marinette showed up late, and everything fell into a kind of routine that Isaac was already starting to get used to. By the time lunch rolled around he was pleased to get himself some food and a smoothie, though he was so out of it that he hardly heard someone asking him a question.

“Earth to Isaac, hello!” Alya’s voice broke through his subconscious.

“Huh?” He looked up at the others who were staring at him.

“Dude, did you not get enough sleep or something?” Nino asked.

“Well, no. Not really. New place and all, you know? Still getting used to everything.” He replied, sipping on his smoothie.

“Adrien asked what it was like to go to school in America,” Alya said, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh, um. It’s not too much different. Much bigger classes, though. About fifteen to twenty in a room. There’re desks too, not tables and everyone’s on level ground. We have to walk to several different classes too. We don’t have so little teachers.” Isaac explained.

“That sounds…” Alya started.

“Awful?” Isaac finished for her with a small grin. “It is sometimes. I’m used to it, though.”

After the initial talk, they kept on going about various things. Lunch flew by after that and they returned to school to finish their day. While the rest of the day was dull, Isaac was absentmindedly watching both Marinette and Adrien now, noting the little things that they did and how they acted around one another. In the end, his day was completed with a nap on his couch, but his night began with a howl and a flash of silver light from his windows.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The wolf and the cat meet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're wanting character design, you can go here: http://toyhou.se/Kaerralind/characters/folder:177577

The wind rushed against his face as he grappled from one roof to the next, zipping along just as Ladybug does with her yo-yo. Being Night Howl for him was a gift, a freedom that he was used to, the thing he wasn’t used to, however, were that the buildings around him were much smaller than back home. He was at the Eiffel Tower in no time, sitting at the top of it, watching the car lights below. 

“Oh Isaiah, if only you could see this through your own eyes.” He murmured, giving a small smile before sighing. He needed to stop thinking of home while he was there. It was distracting him. So much so he almost didn’t notice the metal rod aimed at him. Thankfully he managed to dodge just in time. 

“Who are you, what are you doing here?” The voice practically hissed. 

“Woah there, kitty cat.” He stated, dodging yet another blow. “I know what you’re thinking. I’ve been in your position before, but it’s polite to talk then attack sometimes.” He said, slinging his bolas, effectively capturing the feline. 

“Let me go!” The cat yelled, struggling against the wire. 

“It’s just going to get tighter if you struggle, Chat. Calm down.” Night Howl replied with a frown. “Look, I’m not an Akuma, okay? I’m a hero just like you. Kwami and everything.” 

“How…how do you know my name? How are you a Miraculous like me? I don’t understand.” Chat replied, uncertain, but calmer. 

Night Howl released his bolas from the leather-clad hero and wrapped it around his wrist. “There are more than just two Miraculous. Where I’m from there are seven. That includes me. There are seven more in this area, though there are few that haven’t been activated. You, Ladybug, and your Akumatizing enemy— “ 

“Hawkmoth.” 

“Are the only three that I know to be here. The others, I’m not certain.” He explained. 

“So then why are you here? I don’t understand. We don’t need any help finding Hawkmoth or fighting the Akumas.” Chat replied. 

Night Howl shook his head. “I’m not here for that. I’m here to bring a friend of mine home. You see something bad happened and he ran off. We all managed to track him here and now here I am.” 

Chat Noir crossed his arms, thinking for a moment. “So how do I know you’re telling me the truth? We’ve been lied to before.” 

The teen grinned a bit and moved closer to the cat. “Well, kitty. I could always show you if you want.” He said, resting a hand against the steel of the tower. 

“You mean you’d reveal your identity?” The blonde asked, seeming surprised by the notion. 

“Of course I would. All my teammates back home know who I am, but I guess that’s not the same case here, is it?” 

“No.” The disappointed look on Chat’s face was hard to miss and Night Howl couldn’t help but share a bit of his pain. 

“Ladybug doesn’t like that idea, does she? She’s scared that your loved ones would be in danger, that if you knew each other’s identities that things would turn out badly in the end, right?” He said, removing his hand from the tower and placing it on the cat’s shoulder. “My friends and I were like that too. But after some serious talks we decided that ultimately, it was better for us to know. Better for everyone that we knew and we became stronger because of it. If you don’t want to know, then I’ll keep it to myself, but I’m not afraid of consequences that may or may not be there.” 

“Fine, I believe you. You don’t have to show me.” Chat said, only making Night Howl deflate a little bit, he had been eager to show him. “If you really do turn out to be an Akuma though, I’ll make sure you’ll never forget what it’s like to hurt.” 

The wolf perked up, the tail-like scarf that he wore around his waist wagging slightly, and he just couldn’t help moving even closer to the cat. His hand, once again, moved from its previous spot down to the cat’s waist as he practically pinned the other male to the tower. The look on the other superhero’s face was priceless, as was the deep red colour that flushed across his cheeks. 

“Did the little kitty just threaten me?” He teased with a wide grin. “So feisty, I like it.” 

He grinned again before pulling away, letting Chat stand there in silence as he thought about what had just happened. 

“D-don’t do that.” He replied, brushing himself off a bit. 

“Do what? Get close to you? Make you feel awkward? Embarrassed? Why not? It’s fun to see your face. Besides,” He paused and watched him with his yellow eyes. “aren’t you supposed to be some big flirt? Or is that just with Ladybug?” 

The other male stuttered a bit before finally managing words, “It’s just with Ladybug.” 

“Guess we’ll see who’s better at it then. You or me?” Night Howl stated, turning his back to the cat. “Why are you out here so late? Don’t you have a family to worry about?” 

Chat Noir’s silence told him his answer before he could even say ‘no’. “My family life isn’t the best.” 

Night Howl sat on the edge of the tower, patting next to him for Chat to sit with him, who did, though hesitantly. 

“My family is back home. I left everything behind to come here. So in turn, I don’t really have anyone but my Kwami. So I guess we’re in the same boat then, aren’t we? Might as well confide in one another. Go on, tell me your problems. I promise not to tell.” He said with a genuine smile. 

“Wolf’s honor?” Chat replied in question, holding up his hand. 

“Fine, yeah, wolf’s honor.” 

The next morning was better than the morning before as Isaac managed to somehow get more sleep staying out late chatting with Chat Noir than he did with his plague of nightmares. 

“You really think it’s him?” Canaa asked, floating near him as the teen dressed. 

“I have a good feeling that I’m right. If I’m not, then it’s going to be just as fun as if I am. Either way, I find out today. Maybe he’ll notice too, but seeing as they have yet to figure one another’s identities out I won’t be surprised if he doesn’t.” Isaac said, pulling his signature gray shirt over his head. 

“You’re really going to mess with his head if you do that. What if one of them starts to fall for you? Huh? How are you going to fix that?” The Kwami asked, crossing his small arms. 

“The answer is simple for that.” The amber-eyed teen stated. 

“Oh?” 

“They won’t.” 

“And how do you know that?” 

“Because they’ve already fallen for one another. Chat with Ladybug, Marinette with Adrien. It’s so plain to see. They’re so in love with one another, Marinette can’t even speak right to Adrien, and Chat Noir fell so hard that he sees ladybugs flying around his head when he’s dazed.” 

The wolf kwami laughed a bit and slipped into the inside pocket of Isaac’s overshirt as soon as he pulled it on. “I guess you’re right. Just be careful.” 

The teen shook his head a little as he grabbed his bag and headed off for school. It was a while later, but just before he crossed the street, a small bakery caught his eye and his stomach’s attention. 

“Suppose a croissant or two wouldn’t hurt before school, right?” He asked, turning and heading it. 

“Or twenty,” Canaa mumbled from his shirt. 

“Good morning!” A short, yet striking woman greeted from behind the counter. 

“Good morning,” Isaac replied with a smile before perking up a bit. “You must be Marinette’s mother.” 

“Oh? Are you a friend of hers?” The woman asked with a smile. 

“Yes, ma’am. I just transferred here recently and she’s one of the few that I’ve spent time with.” 

“I’m glad to hear that you’re settling in well. Perhaps you could do me a favour? My daughter is constantly late for school, see if you could get her up for me? I’m afraid I can’t leave the counter. I could even get your order ready while you’re upstairs If you like.” 

“I would be happy to help, and that would be very kind. I’d like a dozen croissants, please.” 

“I’ll have that ready for when you come back down, her room is all the way upstairs and up the trap door. You can head up through the door over there.” She said as she started to collect his order. 

He was quick to go through the door and up the stairs to the last door. He hesitated only for a moment before opening the door and going inside, easily spotting the stairs that lead up to the trap door. He knocked as he reached the door before pushing it open slowly. 

“Marinette?” He asked, peeking into the room. He waited to go further in for an answer, but when he didn’t receive one he opened the hatch further and continued up. He called her name once more, looking around the girl’s room, spotting all the pinned up pictures of Adrien as he did. When he didn’t get an answer once again he started up the stairs that lead to the loft, where he assumed the bed was and there she was, sleeping. “Marinette.” He spoke, reaching out to touch the girl’s foot, only to be kicked damn near in the face, but managed to move his head in time, though only to be hit in the shoulder and fell backward, pulling the blanket with him as he tumbled down the stairs. He didn’t get a chance to register the raven haired girl yelling at him until he got his senses back and could see straight. 

“Why are you in my room? Who let you in here?! How do you know where I live?!” She questioned, and all he could do is groan in return. 

When he opened his eyes he was laid back on the floor, feet still on the stairs as he stared up at the loft. “I was just trying to wake you up. Your mom sent me so you wouldn’t be late for school again. I just wanted croissants.” He spoke, whining a bit at the end. “I didn’t expect you to kick me down the stairs.” 

Marinette hurried down the small flight of stairs, hopping over him to get to the bottom, and helped him sit up. “Are you hurt?” She asked before shaking her head. “Wait, of course, you are! You just fell down the stairs! You’re not bleeding, are you? Oh no, what if you’re bleeding!? What are we going to do!?” 

Isaac couldn’t help but chuckle a bit. “I’m alright, Marinette. I’ve been through worse.” He replied, forcing himself to get up and straighten his clothes. 

“That’s not exactly a good thing. Are you sure you’re okay?” She asked, her voice laced with worry. 

“I’m fine, really. Nothing’s broken. Nothing to worry about, except the small fact that if we wait any longer we’ll be late for school.” He said, checking his phone, which somehow came out undamaged. 

“Oh no! You’re right! I’ll meet you there!” The girl said as she rushed down the stairs. 

“Hey Canaa, you okay?” Isaac asked once Marinette was out of earshot. 

“Okay as anyone would be falling down a flight of stairs!” The small wolf stated, peeking out of the teen’s shirt. 

“Canaa?” A small voice asked, making them both freeze in their tracks. “Is it really you?” 

A small red and black kwami floated down from the loft, an unsure look to her. Isaac simply smiled and held out his hand for her to rest on. 

“You must be Ladybug’s kwami,” Isaac said, rubbing the small creature’s cheek lightly. “So cute, just like her.” 

“You followed him here?” She asked, tilting her head a bit. 

“We had to, Tikki! We have to save him. Without him, we’re just not whole. We can’t just let him stay corrupted.” Canaa replied, floating up and sitting on Isaac’s hand with the other kwami. 

“I have no doubt, but will Darnner be okay without you both? You two are much like Plagg and me.” She said, giving the other kwami a short hug. 

“No worries, Tikki,” Isaac started, “Our team overseas is complete. We have everyone, so Dragonwing and Darnner will be just fine without us. Besides, I’m the only one that can bring them home. It’s only right that I’m the one that does it. Not only that, I have Ladybug here to help as well. There’d be too much conflict if one of the others had come.” He said, explaining his position on the matter. 

“Of course. Plagg never did get along with Torra.” She replied with a small giggle. “You should go before Marinette returns to see you still here. She’s still not open to the idea of sharing such a secret yet.” 

“I know, I talked to Chat last night. We’ll talk some other time, little ladybug.” The teen said, waiting for Canaa to hide once more before giving the small bug kwami a nuzzle before she floated off. Once his meeting was over, he headed down to the bakery, giving Marinette’s mother the update for her daughter’s readiness before paying for his food and heading to the school. 

There was still plenty of time before the first bell rang so he sat on the steps to the school to eat his breakfast. One croissant, then another, and then a third before he saw Nino and Alya show up. 

“Morning!” He called, mouth full of bread. 

“Are you seriously going to eat all of that? Boy, you have some appetite.” Alya said as she and Nino walked up to him. 

“I had an early dinner last night,” Isaac responded, swallowing down a large lump of bread. “I really should’ve gotten a drink with this.” He mentioned before continuing. “Early dinner and I’m starved. Not to mention Marinette practically killed me when I went to wake her up.” He added, taking another bite. 

“Wait, hold up. What were you doing in Marinette’s room? Don’t tell me you’re moving in on her already?” The auburn-haired girl questioned, placing her hands on her hips. 

“No, no. Nothing like that!” Isaac countered. “Her mom just had me go wake her up because she didn’t want her to be late again! That’s all!” He said, holding up his hands in defense. “I know her feelings for Adrien, there’s no way I’m getting in the way of that.” 

“Um, dudes, speaking of which, I’m pretty sure she just heard the whole thing,” Nino spoke, giving Alya a nudge. 

The two turned their attention to the girl in question who was standing there in shock, bright red, and embarrassed. 

“Whoops. Um, hi again, Marinette. It’s good to see that you made it on time.” Isaac said, giving a slight wave. 

It was a long moment before the girl did anything but stand there and stare. “How’d you know about that?” She finally asked, looking down at her feet. 

None of the three really wanted to mention how obvious it was, “Well,” Isaac began, “you have a lot of pictures in your room, not that it’s a bad thing or anything!” He flinched at his own screw-up. “And it’s the way you act around him. You can’t talk to him properly, and you seem to always mess up somehow. But that’s normal!” Alya was about to smack him. 

“Look, girl, what he’s trying to say is it’s not terribly difficult to notice. But it’s not like he’s going to go around blabbing it to anyone.” Alya affirmed, shooting a warning glare at Isaac for good measure. 

“What? Never! It’s not my secret anyhow. I wouldn’t go around telling someone else’s secret to anyone.” 

Nino gave a sheepish grin at the statement and Alya elbowed him. 

“Speaking of the blonde, he just pulled up,” Isaac stated, pointing to the shiny silver car that had just stopped at the drop-off. Marinette immediately when red all over again, and hid behind her best friend. “So cute.” The teen murmured to himself with a smile and went back to eating his breakfast. 

“Morning guys.” Adrian greeted cheerfully. Well, nothing seemed off. “What’s everyone sitting out here for?” 

“Isaac’s just stuffing his face with his breakfast,” Alya stated, raising an eyebrow at the teen sitting down. 

“Want some?” The auburn offered the boy as he reached them. He noticed the slight glance back to the street to see if the car was still there or not, and seeing that it had left, he happily took the croissant that was being held out to him. 

The group continued to talk for a little bit longer, at least until Isaac and Adrian finished off the dozen croissants. The bell rang shortly after they entered the classroom and they all settled in their seats for class to begin. The day dragged on at least until lunch and then P.E. That was when Isaac sought out to make his move. 

He waited until the last moment before pulling the blonde back into the bathroom with him. They were the last two in the room, and he now had the other boy pinned against the wall. 

“W-what are you doing?” Adrien asked, a familiar blush forming on his face. 

“Testing you,” Isaac replied, his voice sounding all too much like Night Howl’s as he spoke. It was this that made the blonde’s eyes widen and that was all the teen needed to know. “See you on the field, Adrien.” He chimed as he pulled away and left the bathroom. 

“You’re a jerk,” Canaa spoke from his inside his shirt. 

“Aw come on, he’s just too cute. If I had done that to Marinette I probably would’ve died.” He stated, looking down at the kwami. 

“I think you have a better chance of dying with the Miraculous of destruction than the Miraculous of creation.” He warned. 

“You may have a point there.” He admitted with a small chuckle, going out to the courtyard to see that everyone turned to stone. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akuma, some heavy stuff, Ladybug being Ladybug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I plan nothing. Things just happen.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Isaac murmured, backing himself back into the locker room. “Adrien, we have a situation here.” He called, hurrying into the boy’s bathroom where he had left the other teen.

“Situation?” The blonde repeated, trying to peak out.

The brunette, pulled him from the door quickly, hiding them both against the wall behind it.

“There’s an Akuma, everyone’s turned to stone.” 

“What? Here? Already?” Adrien let out a groan and pulled his shirt open. “Plagg,” he started.

“You and Canaa can have that reunion later, little kitten, don’t waste time.” Isaac stated, smiling at the black Kwami that had just floated from the blonde’s shirt. Canaa bolted out, clearly ready to go and defeat the new foe. “Remember, we don’t have Dragonwing here, so we have to be careful.”

“You don’t have to remind me, you know.” Canaa replied. 

“Isaac, we don't have time to do this. Ladybug will be here any minute!” Adrien stated, clearly worried about being discovered.

“Right,” The teen agreed, “Canaa, let's howl.”

“Plagg, claws out!”

The two transformed and while Chat Noir escaped through the window, Night Howl booted through the doors of the school. It wasn't difficult to locate the latest victim either. The akuma had a snake body and the torso of a human, though far more reptilian, and her hair flowed down around her.

“It’s like a prettier version of Medusa.” Chat spoke from above. 

“Less Gorgon, more naga.” Night Howl replied with slight headshake. “Where's Ladybug?”

The feline shrugged. “Haven't spotted her yet. Maybe she's a caught up somewhere?”

The wolf waited no longer, leaping up to the second floor of the school to get a better view. He didn't see Marinette anywhere, in fact it seemed like everyone was turned to stone aside from her and Alya. That girl was most likely off filming already. 

_ “What if she’s in danger?” _ Canaa asked.

“Chat, that girl with the blog, where is she? We need to find her!” He spoke, knowing full well his voice could reach the other hero. 

“Alya? She’s…” he faded off a bit. “I don’t see her here, she must be around somewhere. We should split up.” 

“And be away from such a feisty kitty like you?” The wolf gave a grin and a wink, making the cat frown.

“Now I know how Ladybug feels.” Chat murmured before running off.

Night Howl scanned the area before closing his eyes and sniffing the air. “I smell croissants.” He noted. “Marinette?” His pseudo ears perked up a bit and his attention turned to the akuma. “Chat!” He yelled, though now uncertain if the feline was out of earshot or not. “Shit.” He growled, launching his bolas across the way towards the enemy.

It was strange that the snake had yet to notice them, in fact it hadn’t even made an indication of moving at all. He couldn’t help but frown and think about the possibilities, wishing that he had his Dragonwing there to help guide him. He shook the thought off as he swung through the air, his feet making contact with the back of the torso. It was like hitting a wall. There was nothing to it but stone.

“Marinette?” He called. “Alya?” 

The stone naga didn’t move. Chat crept in quietly before smacking the snake with his staff, and the stone surface that Night Howl had been supporting himself on crumbled and he hung from his bolas, shooting a glare at the cat.

“If this isn’t really the akuma, then where is it?” Chat questioned, retracting his staff and hooking it behind him.

“Chat Noir!” A voice called from the classroom that the naga had been guarding a moment ago.

Alya rushed out from beneath the teacher’s desk, pulling Marinette along with her. “The akuma can change it’s shape. It can go from a person to that ugly thing. When it couldn’t find us she ran off. I’m not sure where she went.”

Marinette’s eyes were fixed on him. He knew it. Night Howl wasn’t a know hero in Paris and really he was surprised that Alya hadn’t mentioned it first.

“Who are you?” She asked suddenly, her hands on her hips.

“There is no time for introductions right now. We have to find Ladybug and the akuma. I’ve no doubt that this thing is slithering its way around the city.” He explained, looking at the blogger, but watching Marinette. She seemed suspicious, but unsure at the same time.

“Let’s go then,” Chat replied, shooting to the sky with his staff. “we can get a head start.”

Night Howl nodded in agreement and made his exit quickly, following after the feline. “I have a feeling that Ladybug will be joining us soon. So we’d better find this akuma before she finds us. I don’t think she’s going to take a liking to me so quickly.” He explained as he caught up to Chat Noir.

“Well you did come out of nowhere. Wait, hold on. You don’t know who Ladybug is do you?” Chat asked, turning his attention to the wolf. 

“I do actually, not that I’d tell you.” He admitted. “I know all about your ‘love’ for miss Ladybug. There’s no way I’d ruin that surprise.” He grinned a bit, but it fell as he took a sharp turn. “Chat, this way!”

Below was a large naga, the same one that was in the school, but this time it was moving. The two heros decided to split up, Chat going left and Night Howl to the right, to hopefully take the beast off guard. His first job, figure out how this akuma turned people into stone. Second job, don’t get turned into stone, or maybe he should switch that around?

_ “Isaac! Stop getting distracted!.” _ Canaa snipped.

The teen emptied his thoughts and restarted. Medusa turned people into stone by them looking at her. If he didn’t turn to stone, maybe this akuma did it another way. There was only one way to find out and all he had to do was get closer to her. Chat, on the other hand was doing what he did best and that was distracting. With the akuma’s attention on him, Night Howl had his chance and swooped down, stopping at a police officer who was trying to evacuate the people.

“Excuse me sir,” the hero spoke. “Would you mind lending me some aid? It would require being turned to stone, but I assure you that everything will be fine and you will be considered a hero yourself for helping out.”

Time was running out. The akuma was losing interest in prey that it couldn’t catch. He needed this officer’s answer as consent was one of the most important things to his superhero code.

“O-of course! It’s my duty to serve Paris and keep citizens safe!” He answered. That was all he needed. He twisted part of his bolas around the man, and the other part grappled onto a nearby building where he swung them both up to get in front of the beast.

“Chat! That’s enough! I need her attention!” Night Howl called, and the feline hero retreated behind a building. 

His exchange was quick, placing the officer on the street near the naga and swinging away, effectively baiting her, and watched. Just as quick as he’d placed the man on the ground he’d been turned to stone.

“I got it.” He mentioned to himself, and before he could grapple to another building, where Chat had gone, he was snagged in wire and yanked off his feet.

“You’re not going  _ anywhere _ .” The voice sent an icy chill down his spine.

“Ladybug, how nice to see you.” He spoke, giving a smile as he looked up from his position to look at her. “I know this looks suspicious, but you have to believe me when I tell you I’m not an akuma.”

His explaining didn’t sway her opinion and she narrowed her eyes at him. “Is that so?” She asked, pulling him closer. “And how do I know you’re not lying to me?”

“Come now, I would  _ never _ lie to you. You guys are heroes! I’m a hero too and if you don’t let me go, or move us both off this roof, we’re going to be blasted into stone then Paris will be doomed forever. Okay, well not  _ forever _ , but you get my point.” His convincing wasn’t doing his job and he did the only thing he could think of to get out of the mess he’d found himself in.

“Chat!” He yelled. “Ladybug’s got me! Can you  _ please _ come get your girlfriend?!” 

In a single moment he found himself being yanked and slammed against another roof as Ladybug had successfully dodged a blast from the naga who’d he’d caught the attention of with his yelling. The heroine glared at him even more, searching him over for what he assumed she thought was his akumatized item and he got nervous when her eyes locked onto his necklace.

“Ladybug, no.” He said, shaking his head. “There’s no need for that. I’m not an akuma! Chat believed me! There’s no need for that!” He spoke, getting more desperate as she closed the gap and took the necklace into her hand. He stared at her, eyes wide, begging her not to do it. “Tikki, don’t let her do this. You need me here and you know it.”

The girl pulled away, staring at him as if he’d found out something so secret about her that it could ruin her life forever. She looked scared. Truly scared.

Chat reappeared and assessed the scene before raising an eyebrow. “We don’t really have time for this, Lovebug. We need to capture the akuma in the victim’s bracelet.”

“You found it!” Night Howl stated, slipping out of the now loosened grip of Ladybug’s yoyo.

The wolf looked back as he and Chat rushed the akuma, and he knew that the girl was trying to sort things out. He knew Tikki had heard him. He could see it, but whether Ladybug did or not was the question. 

Between him and Chat Noir, they managed to procure the bracelet rather quickly, dodging the heavy beams that came from the naga’s eyes to prevent getting turned into stone. At some point, Chat had gotten skimmed in the leg and stone was creeping up, while Night Howl himself got stuck to the ground by both feet.

“Ladybug!” Chat yelled, racing towards her. “Catch!” 

With the bracelet in Ladybug’s hands she was able to destroy it, catch the akuma, and purify it. After that, there was a rush of ladybugs, returning everything to its previous state. Curing everyone from their petrified prisons. 

Once things were back to normal, Night Howl returned to the two other heroes and noticed quickly that Ladybug refused to look at him in the eyes. She seemed upset and distant, even Chat noticed the different, making it more obvious.

“You both should go before your miraculous runs out.” Night Howl stated, giving Chat a slight nod before heading off, back to the school. Chat wasn’t far behind, and came through the bathroom window a few moments after Isaac had detransformed.

“What happened out there?” Adrien asked quickly, dropping his transformation when he landed. “Do you and Ladybug know each other?”

The amber-eyed teen shook his head. “No, no we don’t. Not this incarnation of us anyway. But that doesn’t matter. I think I scared her.” He admitted, leaning against the lockers.

“Scared Ladybug?” The blonde tilted his head slightly in confusing. “How?”

“I called to Tikki.” Isaac spoke.

“You  _ what?! _ ” Plagg, Adrien’s kwami flew out suddenly, eyes wide.

“I was desperate. She was going to rip my miraculous right off of me if I hadn’t. It was the only way I could stop her.” He explained, and his own kwami, Canaa, floated out and agreed.

“If we hadn’t called out we would’ve been exposed. Our cover would’ve been blown and the very reason we’re here would be for naught.” 

The doors to the bathroom burst open and both kwami hid, and the two teens had to seem distressed, which wasn’t difficult considering the conversation. Isaac turned away, and walked out of the bathroom, avoiding any further questions, only stopping when he saw Marinette on the other side of the room. Alya saw him, and before she could call him over, he made a beeline for the exit of the school. He couldn’t stay, not after what he’d done. He’d only make it worse.

Things were normal on his way home. It wasn’t far, just down the street and around the corner. When he got home he turned on the news, English subtitles to help him keep up with the talking.

_ “I feel really honored! To help out Paris’s heros like that, I was glad. It’s my duty after all, and thanks to me, they knew how people were being turned to stone.” _ The police officer spoke to a reporter. Isaac frowned. Sacrifices are not how the heros of Paris deal with akumas. That’s not the way.

He switched the channel, trying to find anything that would keep his attention, dull his senses. 

“Isaac?” Canaa spoke, touching the teen’s arm. “It’ll be alright. She won’t be upset forever and Tikki will explain what happened.” 

“I should’ve just told them both. I should’ve gone up to the both of them, told them who I was, and be done with it.” He snapped, his head falling into his hands. “To do it like this, I should’ve expected something like this to happen.”

“You know, the first time someone told me that they had a miraculous, they turned out to be a fake who turned into an akuma named Vulpina. She tricked both Ladybug and I and almost got both of our miraculous to give to Hawkmoth.” Chat’s voice spoke from the entrance to his bedroom.

“I left my window open then?” Isaac questioned, looking over at the leather clad hero.

“We weren't done talking.” He replied, crossing his arms. “Plagg, claws in.” He said quietly, and dropped the transformation.

“You know you don’t have to say that, right? You could just think it. Plagg can hear you. He knows everything that happens while you’re transformed. Kwami aren’t just our powers, they’re a second pair of eyes. A second set of senses.” Isaac explained, looking over at Adrien. “To tap into another wielder's second senses is like touching their very souls. If you don’t know what’s happening, it can be pretty frightening. Reaching out to Tikki, what I did out of desperation to save myself, it was like forcing my way into Ladybug’s very senses, touching something that she, nor you, even knew about until now.” 

“How long have you had your miraculous?” The other teen asked, moving closer. Isaac moved over, making room for Adrien on his couch so he could sit.

“About five years now. Young, I know, but there are points in your life when you have to make difficult decisions. My decision was made when I kidnapped. You’d be surprised how common that is in America and to have such a large city to be hidden away in, it’s difficult to be found. It’s even harder when your own family kidnaps you though.” He said, smiling slightly.

“How did your own family kidnap you?” Adrien asked, sitting down to listen.

“It was my father. He had gotten caught up in some bad stuff, and so he was going to sell me off to pay his debts. He got arrested when he was caught, of course, but that journey led me to finding a box. This box had little things in it. Pins, necklaces, bracelets, earrings. Simple things. When I picked up the necklace, Canaa was released.” He spoke, leaning against the back of the couch, closing his eyes to remember. “When I was being moved from place to place, I hid all the jewelry on my person, I was young, and it was all I could do. I thought, maybe if I had something to sell, no matter where I ended up, I could get back home.” He chuckled suddenly. “My first transformation was crazy. Turning into a superhero, you’d think it’s amazing, right? I beat up the bad guys, found some police, they got arrested, and I got called a hero. Then I had to go back and pretend that this amazing superwolf saved me from the bad guys.”

The other teen chuckled a bit at the end of the story. “At least you made it home.”

Isaac nodded. “I did, yeah. But it didn’t stop there. I started something, released something that started causing problems. By opening the box of miraculous, I released the corruption that went along with it. I met Master Foo back then, and gave him the remaining miraculous, to keep them safe. He passed them out as he needed, and now we have an entire team back home… at least we did anyway.” He said, his smile falling at the thought.

“You don’t have to talk about that right now if you don’t want to, Isaac.” Adrien said with a sympathetic smile, placing a hand on the other teen’s shoulder to comfort him.

“Thanks Adrien. I’m sorry to spring all this on you so suddenly.” He apologized, looking down to look at the wolf tooth necklace he wore around his neck. 

He didn’t see, but Adrien smiled, “Hey, you just moved here, and the only one you have is your kwami. If you need a friend, I really hope to be one. The others too. They’ll all be your friends.”

A small smile formed on Isaac’s face. “You think so? You’re not going to act weird around me, are you?” He asked, looking over at the other boy.

“Of course not. Just because we know each other’s identities doesn’t mean it’s going to get awkward or weird. I think it’ll help, actually. If you really do know who Ladybug is, then I hope she understands like I do, but for now, I figured that you just need a friend.” 

Isaac nodded and his smile grew. “I’m glad I met you, Adrien. Maybe in return for being my friend I could convince Ladybug that you actually love her.” The blush that grew on the blonde’s face made his comment worth it, and he couldn’t help but chuckle at his new friend’s embarrassment. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This got hella deep. Isaac wtf is wrong with you? I thought you were stable? ¯\\_(⌣̯̀ ⌣́)_/¯


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Cause I'm in too deep, and I'm trying to keep, Up above in my head, instead of going under" - Sum 41  
> Literally the song lyrics above...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had this chapter in progress for like a week and I finally got the time to finish it. Good luck, hope you can swim in such deep water.

_ Poor sweet Night Howl. So far from home, all alone. Such a lonely wolf, cursed to cause misfortune wherever he goes. You can try to keep fixing what you’ve screwed up but it’s never going to work. You’re just going to keep messing things up like you always do until someone gets killed. Are you going to get them killed too? Chasing after something you’ll never be able to obtain because you’re foolish. So hopeful but ever so helpless. You are nothing. You will forever be nothing. You will always be a failure. _

The words from his nightmare that he’d woken from rang so clearly in his mind. It had been a few days since the Akuma attack, and he’d stayed pretty hidden from Paris, but Chat Noir and Ladybug had a knack for finding him. That night he leant against the cool metal of the top of the Eiffel Tower, trying to clear his head.

_ You should just jump you know. It would save everyone some misery. Just revert and jump.  _

He growled at the echoing thoughts in his head. That voice wouldn’t leave him. He ran his fingers through his hair, pushing his hood down, revealing the rest of his head. If he could, he’d pull his mask off and throw it, but it was stuck to him unless he released the transformation. He banged the back of his head against the metal slightly, gripping his hair tightly trying to shake the feeling that clung to him.

_ “Isaac?” _ Canaa spoke in his head,  _ “Maybe we should go back to the flat? You’re stressing about this. I know it’s hard but you have to be strong.” _

The teen growled again. Fisting his hand and smacking it against the platform he was sitting on. “No, Canaa. I will not falter to this. Just because he knows I’m here doesn’t give me a reason to just go home with my tail between my legs!”

_ “But look what it’s doing to you. I knew you should’ve brought someone else with you! You should’ve never been allowed to come here by yourself!” _

“I am not by myself.” He argued, relaxing himself the best he could. “I will never be by myself. Not now, not ever. I have you, remember?”

_ “Isaac…” _

“And I have Chat, he understands at least a little. Ladybug will never understand.” He spoke, standing up and stepping to the edge of the platform. The wind whipped his hair from beneath his scarf as he stood there. Just a lean and he would fall. “At this point, I don’t even think Ladybug would accept me. I’ve already screwed things up. I should’ve been Crow all along, we both know this.” He said, loosening the bolas on his wrist, closing his eyes and leaning forward.

The sudden rush of wind that hit his face as he fell from the tower for a moment, reminding him of the highrise buildings back in America. His fall was short lived, however, as something wrapped around his waist and yanked him back to the tower making him come back to himself and catch himself on one of the steel beams.

“What the hell?!” He questioned, looking down at his waist, frowning when he saw a familiar wire wrapped around him. “What, you come to try to pull my miraculous off again?” He snapped, frowning at the raven haired girl who was standing higher up on the tower. His frown faded though when he saw the look on her face. It was one of worry and he raised an eyebrow. “Did you think I was falling to my death or something?”

Night Howl could see Ladybug’s mouth move, but he couldn’t hear anything. With a sigh he swung himself back up, landing near the female hero. “Well? Did you think I was just going to go splat down there on the pavement?”

_ “Gruesome. What’s wrong with you?” _

He let out a slight growl and sighed. “Look, I know we got off on the wrong foot, but I’d like to fix—”

“I’m sorry.” She spoke suddenly, her right hand gripping her left arm in insecurity. “I should’ve tried to talk to you instead of jumping to conclusions. I’m sorry.”

Night Howl couldn’t believe his ears, and he pulled his hood back up to reactivate his wolf ears that were connected to his hood. “You’re sorry?” He questioned, watching the girl. She only nodded in response. She looked as though she was going to cry.

“Ladybug,” he spoke, moving closer to her to take her left hand into his own. “it’s alright. I’m not mad at you. You were just doing what you thought was right and I can’t fault you for that.”

“Why did you jump from the platform?” She asked looking at the other teen. “Surely you weren’t trying to…” Her voice faded off as she gave a slight sniffle.

The wolf smiled a bit and shook his head, cupping the girl’s cheek in his hand. “No, no. None of that. I was just enjoying the air is all. I did it all the time back home.” He replied, “I wouldn’t be a hero if I broke so easily.” 

It was clear that the other teen was having trouble keeping her emotions in order, and all Night howl could do was smile. “Look, I’m fine, see? Not a scratch on me.” He said, backing up and holding his arms out. “You’re a strong little bug, but nothing I can’t handle.”

This seemingly made Ladybug feel better and she relaxed a bit, drying her eyes the best she could with her hand. “Can I ask you something?” She asked, finally speaking after a few moments. The other hero tilted his head to motion he was curious. “How did you talk to Tikki? How did you know you could do that? And how could you know it would work like that?” 

The boy chuckled. “Instead of asking me if you can ask me ‘something’ how about just ask me if you could play twenty questions.” He said with a slight shrug. He motioned her to follow him, and climbed back up to the top platform of the tower, settling on the edge with his legs hanging over.

“Kwamis are always with their wielder, even when they’re transformed. That’s how we have our powers. Without them we’re… normal. So it’s only obvious that they can hear us. They see what we see and more. As I told Chat,” He paused to see her reaction, which was an eyebrow raise and her arms crossed, “they’re like second senses. Another pair of eyes. They see things, hear things, and sense things that are around them and tapping into that as a miraculous wielder can be a resource that you shouldn’t just throw away.”

Ladybug was quiet for a few minutes, clearly thinking things out. “Can I talk to your kwami? Can they hear me?” She asked.

With another chuckle, Night Howl nodded, “Yes, he can hear you just fine. In fact, if you want,” He paused and closed his eyes for a moment, cupping his hands together as he concentrated. “You could just talk to him like this.” He said after a faded image of Canaa appeared in his hands.

The blue-eyed girl gasped. “You can do that?!” She exclaimed. “Can I do that?”

“Of course you can,” The image of Canaa spoke, “all miraculous wielders can do it. It may take practice, but it isn’t as hard as it seems. We kwami are here to help and protect you to the best of our ability. How can we do that if we go dormant when you transform? We’re always with you no matter what. Why else do you think we get so exhausted and hungry?”

“That’s so cool,” Ladybug replied in awe. “I can’t wait until Tikki and I can do that.”

The image of the small wolf kwami faded as Night Howl brought his hands to his chest as if to return a piece of him. “Ladybug, look, I can’t lie to you, and I honestly can’t stand the way you and Chat Noir are working like this.” He stated.

Confusion was plastered all over the heroine’s face.

“I’m just going to show you because I hate hiding it. You should know, just like Chat.” The teen stated, closing his eyes once more, holding his hand to his miraculous as he released his transformation.

Ladybug stood there in shock, staring for a good half a minute before turning her back to him. “D-don’t do that! I shouldn’t know!” She blurted. 

“You’ve already seen, what’s the point of turning around now?” Isaac questioned, leaning back on his hands.

“We’re not supposed to know who each other are.” She replied, refusing to look back.

Isaac rolled his eyes. “Marinette, I already know who you are, and I’ve already met Tikki. We know who each other are, but I’m not going to tell Chat who you are, and I’m not telling you who he is. That secret is still safe. I don’t like it, but I’ll keep it. Like I told him, my team all know who each other are. It makes things easier.” He explained.

The girl turned slowly, eyes a bit wide. “How did...nevermind. It’s too dangerous for us to know each other’s identities.” 

“Says…?”

“Tikki.”

“I see. Tikki is right about not telling your family. That’s dangerous and can get them in danger, but as far as teammates go, it’s best if you know that way you can look out for one another.”

“I never thought of it like that.”

“Some don’t, and that’s alright, but to know is better than not.”

“You’re really not going to tell Chat, are you?” 

Isaac shook his head. “I’m not going to tell him. I promise.” 

A small smile formed on Ladybug’s face and she took the moment to sit down on the edge of the platform, legs dangling over like Isaac had his own.

“Sitting here, looking out at the city, it reminds me of back home.” The auburn-haired teen spoke. “It’s the highest point in the city. Here you can see almost everything. It’s honestly hard to acclimate without all the highrise buildings around, but I’ll make do with that I’ve been dealt.”

“You two aren’t having some sort of romantic rendezvous up here are you?” A voice asked as someone landed with a thud against the platform.

A cocky grin grew on Isaac’s face. “Of course not, Chat. After all, if it were, it’d be my second one. You are the one that met me first.” He said, winking at the cat.

The blonde puffed up a bit and the unmasked teen could only laugh at the sight.

“Ladybug and I were just getting to know one another.”

“Well do it with your mask on. We can’t have people seeing you at the top of the tower like this. They’ll think something’s up.” The cat replied, crossing his arms.

“Oh, you mean like Ladybug assumed that I had jumped to my death?” Isaac questioned, shaking his head with a smile. “Canaa,” he spoke, without a single word Canna flew to his necklace, transforming Isaac back into Night Howl without much effort. “Tell me, Ladybug, do you still do the transformation pose too, or is it just Chat?”

There was an awkward silence as both Parisian heroes looked between one another and turned away in embarrassment, effectively answering the new hero’s suspicion. 

“A-Anyway,” Chat started, plopping his rear onto the edge of the platform opposite side of Night Howl, “what are you two doing up here anyway? I heard you say it reminded you of home?”

“Chat,” Ladybug warned.

“It’s alright,” Night Howl assured, “it’s better if I talk about it.” He added, leaning back on his hands. “Hope you guys are ready for a long story because this one is… it’s pretty rough, and it goes back a few years.”

Two two teens stayed silent, waiting for their new comrade to begin his tale, and he took in a bit of a shaky breath.

“Some years back when I was kidnapped by my father, I found a box of what I thought were valuable pieces of jewellery. He’d had it stored away in the backseat of the car and I figured that if I could get away, I could use it to buy my way home. It was a dark time for me, getting moved around, running from the authorities and anyone that might take me away from my father. One night I was looking at the pieces in the box when I felt something calling to me. Something that just felt right and it drew me in.” He reached out as if to touch something that wasn’t there. “I’d almost touched it when my father jumped into the car and sped off. I had to hide what I was doing pretty fast, but I hadn’t realised that I dropped something from the box.” He paused, reaching up to touch his necklace.

“A while later, there were sirens and we had to hide. If only it were the police that had found us first. The men my father was in debt to found us, and they beat him. Said that if he didn’t pay them that they would just take me instead. Through my thrashing to get away from them, I grabbed the misplaced necklace that was on the floorboard and transformed. Canaa never spoke a word to me at first, he just helped me. After it was all over, I pulled the rest of the jewellery from the box, hid it in my clothes, and simply acted like nothing had happened. Dad was too messed up to know reality from fiction, so I just went with it. The cops found us shortly after that, I was hiding in the car while they put him in the police car.” He placed his hands in his lap, holding them together as he continued his story.

“When I returned home everything went back to the way it was. Mum did her best to take care of me and work two jobs to support us, I went to school and never complained about it. Canaa and I grew closer and he told me what he was, what I was, and what we could do for the world. It was amazing. I could help people! And I did!” The teen’s wolf ears perked straight up but drooped back down as he spoke. “Slowly, one by one, the other Miraculous started to wake up. I could feel them stirring and I knew I had to find others to pair them with. Crow was the first. He was my best friend and at first, everything was fine. Things were going great and everything fell into place. Only...if wasn’t as perfect as I thought and Crow’s home life turned sour.” He stopped to close his eyes and took a breath, relaxing himself the best he could. “He found his mother and younger brother dead one day after school. The police said it was a break-in, that the perpetrators hadn’t taken anything but money, but why they murdered was unclear. Maybe his mum tried to fight back? I don’t know. It was a mess.”

Neither hero spoke, but it was clear that they wanted to. Ladybug nearly had tears in her eyes, and Chat was trying not to look down in shame for some unknown reason. “That’s when the real trouble started. You both have to deal with Hawkmoth, he seems bad, but he throws upset children or adults at you both, hoping to get your Miraculous to have the ultimate power. Crow, he… he turned into something much worse. Started calling himself the Morrígan after the Goddess of doom and death. With a new found name, he started creating Akuma. Not in your typical, ‘butterfly gone bad’ way either. No, he corrupts the mind, blackens the heart, and empties the souls of his victims. They’re ruthless and they’re not defeated easily. To create a demon, or what you call an Akuma, he takes control of them, corrupts them and twists them into beasts of themselves. What they may look like from their soul, and not their shell.” He explained, though having trouble doing so.

“Hawkmoth only influences his victims for mild revenge. The Morrígan wants his demons to kill for revenge. To doom the soul and damn it. Leaving but a husk of the victim’s former self. When he changed, I was up to me to pass along the other Miraculous I had in my possession. One by one, each was given out to my closest friends, with caution, of course, and we did everything we could to reverse the damages. Dragonwing, my team’s Ladybug, return things to normal, thus the power of the Dragonfly and the Ladybug Miraculous. However, any deaths cannot be rewritten and undone so managing to stop it before that happens is most often than not, impossible.”

“Why are you here then?” Ladybug asked, worry written all over her face. “If you’re here, then what about your team back home? Don’t they need you?”

Night Howl shook his head. “If only that was the case. When Morrígan heard about Hawkmoth, he thought that he could be of help. So he came to seek him out. I had to follow as it was my own doing that we’re in this quandary anyway. My team stayed back home, not only because all of us just can’t disappear, but because they’re needed there, and I’m needed here. I have you both, and there are other Miraculous still dormant that can be of assistance to the both of you. Chat told me about Vulpina, but the real Fox Miraculous still sleeps. He’s still dormant, and it’s only a matter of time that he’ll show himself. Miraculous come in pairs. They balance one another. Yet, there’s always the single one that is doomed to a life of tragedy.” 

“You were supposed to have the Crow Miraculous, weren’t you?” Chat Noir spoke up, still looking down, clearly in deep thought. “That’s why you feel responsible. You’re the one that should’ve had it, so you’re thinking that if you had it then this would’ve never happened in the first place.”

The wolf nodded in agreement. “That’s exactly right. Yet fate seems to have pushed me into the path of the wolf and so here I am, trying to clean up the mistakes that I’ve made. There’s always one on the team that is darkened by the burdens of keeping the others safe. That’s the path of the protector, Chat Noir, you and I both know it well. The black cat, and the lone wolf.” 

Silence fell over the small team, with such heavy emotions weighing on them, none had anything to say. Ladybug was the first to speak, though, standing up and pointing at the two of them.

“Nonsense. You both are more important to the teams than you think. Chat, you mean the world to me, and I’d be nowhere without you. And Night Howl, I’m certain that your team misses you deeply, and wish they could help you, more than anything. But since they can’t be here, then it’s up to Chat and I to do so. I know we got off on the wrong foot, but you’ve proven to me that you’re no liar and that you’re telling the truth.” She said, giving them both her signature smile.

“Thank you,” the wolf spoke, standing up with the girl. “I’ll gladly take your help, and in return, I’ll help you find Hawkmoth. Maybe then, our cities, and the world will finally be safe from the looming darkness once again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was rough, but at least it's out there. Finally, some plot progression and I can go back to flirty Night Howl. He's so damn angsty.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bromance!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry this has taken me so long to update. I've been busy and frankly, I've been staring at this chapter for about three weeks. It was hard to get out but I finally got it. Anyway, have an update. Oh, and if you're wanting to see some more characters and what not, you can go to my Toyhou.se folder here: http://toyhou.se/Kaerralind/characters/folder:177577

_ Night Howl… _

The auburn-haired teen shifted in his sleep.

_ Night Howl. _

He clenched his eyes tightly, trying to get the voice out of his head. Damn thing haunted him to no end.

“Oh Night Howl~”

A hand touched his shoulder and he panicked, snatching the hand and pulling, pinning the stranger to the bed, his forearm at their throat.

“Isaac! Woah! Hey, it’s just me!” Chat Noir stated, eyes wide as he watched his friend.

The foreigner glared down at the feline superhero. “How can I be so sure? How do I know this isn’t some kind of trick in my head?”

“Trick? What? No! Isaac, seriously. It’s hard to breath.”

“Isaac, stop!” Canaa’s voice pierced his ears like a gunshot and he pulled back, looking down at the blond teen, disheveled and startled by his actions.

“You know Chat, that’s not a bad look for you.” Isaac stated, crossing his arms and grinning.

A hint of red appeared on Chat’s cheeks. “You can’t just do that and brush it off. What the heck was that about?”

“Chat, it’s best not to ask about that right now.” The wolf kwami warned, floating over to him. “It’s a bit of a sensitive subject.”

The cat let out a quiet growl. “Yeah, well you weren’t the one being strangled.” He spat.

“That’s only because you came in here uninvited!” Isaac snapped back, shooting off another glare. “Look, I don’t want to talk about it, and you shouldn’t come in here while I’m sleeping.”

“I only came here to get you for school. We’re late, you know.”

“I don’t care. I don’t feel like going. I just want to sleep.” He lowered his head in defeat as he spoke, anger dissipating with nearly all other emotions.

“This is about The Morrígan isn’t it?” Chat Noir asked, sitting up on the bed. “We’ll find him, Isaac. We’ll defeat him and help him, and then you can go home together.”

“That’s…” Isaac hesitated and sat on the edge of his bed next to the superhero, “that’s not why I’m worked up. Crow he—” He took a breath and pushed his messy hair out of his face. “We have this… connection. I don’t know how to explain it, I don’t know what it is, maybe it’s because I was supposed to be in his place, but he’s in my head. I can hear him taunting me.”

Chat reached up to place a hand on the other teen’s back, but ultimately decided against it. “If he’s really in your head, tell him to go away. I know that’s really bad advice, and you don’t have to tell me that it’s not going to work or that it doesn’t work that way, I know. You just have to work through it. It’s draining and it sucks but it’s all we can do.”

Isaac smiled a bit and nodded. “You’re right. I know you’re right. At this point I can’t tell if it’s really him or if my brain is just mimicking his voice and I’m doing this to myself.” He couldn’t help but laugh at himself. “Letting it get to me so badly. My friends back home would be disappointed in me.” He spoke. “Isaac, stop being mopy. Isaac suck it up. Isaac if you don’t stop frowning I’m throwing you off the nearest building.” He said, shaking his head. 

“You want a building to jump off of?” The cat asked suddenly, leaning back on his hands. “I know one. Safer than the Eiffel Tower. You might not want to do it during the day though. You might freak some people out.”

“I need something, that’s for sure.” He replied, falling onto his back on the bed, eyes closed. He let his mind wander for a few minutes, thankful of Chat’s presence beside him. For some reason it made him relax. At least it did until his dreaming brought his rest to a screeching halt as he imagined the slim feline straddling him. His eyes shot open and he was off the bed in a second, nearly tripping over himself.

“Everything okay?” The cat questioned, concerned yet again for his new friend.

“Fine. Everything’s fine. Just a weird dream.” He replied, grinning awkwardly. “Aren’t you going to go to school?” He asked, changing the subject completely.

“If you’re not going, then I’m not going. Besides, I can just tell them I had a photoshoot or something.”

The amber-eyed teen raised an eyebrow and laughed a bit. “Whatever you say mister supermodel. You might want to be a civilian while you’re in my flat or someone might question what Chat Noir is doing in this building.” He explained, leaving the room with a yawn. “I could make breakfast or something for us.”

“Already on it!” Canaa stated happily, floating around the small kitchen.

“What are you making?” He asked.

“Canaa cooks?” Adrien questioned as he followed Isaac out of the bedroom, kwami floating after him.

“Of course I cook! Isaac can’t do everything by himself. Don’t let him cook for you. He’ll probably poison you.” The wolf Kwami stated with a grin.

“That was one time! Once!”

“Well that’s because no one lets you near their stove anymore.” 

“Can I ask what happened?”

“Yes.”

“No.” Isaac glared at his Kwami, who simply smiled in return.

“He caught himself on fire then the food was undercooked and everyone got food poisoning and he got a second degree burn.” Canna spouted with a smirk before returning to floating around the kitchen, preparing their meal.

Adrien was having a difficult time not laughing and Isaac sat on the couch in shame. “It was once. And I was basically a kid at the time.”

The blond smiled and sat next to him. “Don’t worry, I can’t cook at all. So you’re already doing better than I am.”

The teen shook his head and leaned his head against the couch. “You know, it’s nice having someone here who understands me.” He said, looking over at Adrien. “I could feel the same.” The blond replied.

The boys laughed awkwardly before quieting down and sitting in silence, only the sound of the Kwami cooking in the kitchen filling it. Sure, Night Howl and Chat Noir were similar, but what about himself and Adrien? Yes, he was Night Howl and Night Howl was him, same with Chat Noir and Adrien, but that didn’t mean their civilian selves had many things in common. 

“So,” Adrien started after a few minutes, “you never talk about your friends back in America. What are they like?” he asked and Canaa let out an audible cough. “Or is that a bad subject?”

The foreign teen smiled a bit. “I wouldn't say it's a bad subject. Just a sensitive one.” He replied before getting up and walking to his bedroom to retrieve his cellphone. “Let's start with Zale,” he said, opening his picture gallery. He flipped through many pictures, eventually stopping on a blond haired, green-eyed teen who seemed far from amused about having a picture taken. “He's a royal pain most of the time but he knows how to get things done. If you can see that bracelet he's wearing, the snake, that's his Miraculous.”

“Snake, wolf, and a crow. That's three so far.” Adrien held up three of his fingers, counting each of the known American team.

Isaac nodded. “This,” he added, showing off a picture of a ginger haired, golden-eyed teen. “this is Bec. He's the mantis.” He then zoomed in to a small flower pin that was just peeking from Bec’s hair. “And that's his Miraculous.” Adrien held up another finger, counting four. The teen scrolled through his pictures and stopped at another. “This ass is Cadoc. If you think you play the media game, you'd be a sore loser compared to him. It's his favourite thing about an Akuma and we always send him to the media while the rest of us take the time to disappear.”

Canaa let out a small groan and rolled his eyes, not that either of the teens saw. “Cadoc is the tiger.” He spoke, floating over to the boys on the couch to look at the pictures with them.

“I take it that you don't get along?” Plagg, who'd been snooping around Isaac’s flat since Adrien had detransformed spoke up, startling the blond.

Canna shook his head quickly and Isaac chuckled. “It's a cats versus dogs thing apparently. I'll never quite understand it.” He explained as he continued. “Next is Miles. He's the firefly. You can call him a bit of a firecracker too, because he's a bit hard to handle. Between his competitive side and his lack of seriousness, he can be difficult to work with. At least he's not like Bec, though. Bec is constantly getting himself into trouble.” He flipped a few more times and stopped, hovering his finger over a picture of an ash brown haired teen with beautiful blue eyes. 

“Dragonwing?” Adrien asked, looking a little concerned for his new friend. “Yeah,” Isaac replied with a solemn smile. “That’s Tristain, the Dragonfly.” He said, hovering a moment longer before flipping to the next picture.

“Isaac,” The wolf Kwami spoke to get his wielder's attention. “breakfast is done.”

The teen’s smile turned and became happier as he got up, placing his phone onto the coffee table in front of them. “Come on, no one is going to tell you what you can and can’t eat here.”

The blond didn’t need to be told twice and practically raced Isaac to the table. “Plagg.” Canaa said, grinning as he floated a plate of cheese onto the table. “You have breakfast as well.” The black cat Kwami zipped over, stopping above the cheese and sniffing. “It’s not camembert, but it’ll do.”

“Compromise.” Isaac chuckled a bit as he sat down to a plate of sausage, bacon, toast, eggs and grape juice.

“This is a really big breakfast.” Adrien stated, eyes wide in awe at the meal. This only made Isaac go from a chuckle to a laugh as he watched the other teen.

“Americans have large breakfasts.” He replied when he regained his composure.

There was no more talking after that. The boys were both eating, along with Plagg who did his best not to scarf down his cheese too fast, and Canaa who munched his way through a large bag of beef jerky. It was peaceful, almost too peaceful. There was a feeling in the pit of Isaac’s gut that was nagging at him, not that it made him stop eating. He couldn’t help but frown.

“I feel it too.” His Kwami spoke, looking over at him. “I don’t know what it is, but I feel it.”

“Everything okay?” His guest asked, pausing his eating and watched the two of them. The other teen shrugged. “I don’t know what it is.”

There was a ringing in his head that he couldn’t quite place. A whisper in the breeze that flowed through the open windows of his flat. “Canaa.” He stated, and without another word the small wolf flung himself at the necklace against his chest. Within a moment there sat Night Howl, sitting at the breakfast table, Adrien ready to transform at the first signal of danger.

The wolf pulled out a communicator, small, but all he needed, and flipped it open. Unlike Chat Noir and Ladybug’s communicators, his wasn’t so easily hidden in his weapon. He searched it, looking at the map of the surrounding area. “There’s nothing here.” He frowned. He swiped his finger across the screen and spotted a glowing symbol. He tapped it.

“Yo! Howl! Hey it’s nice to know that you’re not, y’know, dead.” An orange haired hero practically yelled into their own communicator. “Is it daylight there? What’s it, like tomorrow or something?”

“I’m only six hours ahead of you.” The teen replied, completely unamused. “Striker, look, I have a bad feeling about something. Is everything okay over there?”

“Right as rain, captain. Nothing too strange going on here.” The mantis hero spoke with a cheesy grin.

“Is that Night Howl?!” Another voice called, far more in distress than Striker. “Yeah, he said he’s got one of those  _ feelings _ .” Striker yelled back to whomever was near him.

“Would you two pay attention? We have a situation here!”

“Dragon?” Night Howl’s eyes went wide and he was starting to panic. “What the hell is going on over there?”

“Nothing to worry about, Howl. We got this all under control. Though I’m a little tied up at the moment. I’d show you but I can’t really move that well.”

Night Howl could hardly believe what was happening and simply rubbed one of his temples with his free hand. It seemed they were in a rather harrowing situation and as always, Striker was being a fool.

“Y’know Howly, if you’re getting one of those feelings again, it could be serious. What kind of feeling is it?” Striker questioned, wiggling around in what Night Howl presumed were some kind of confines. “Is it just one of those bad ones? Squirmy in your stomach? Doom? Death? C’mon.”

It was all he could do to not hang up. “He’s got a point.” Adrien said, holding up a finger. “If you try to figure out what type of feeling it is then it might help you figure out what might happen.”

“Hey who's that? You get yourself a boyfriend over there?” Striker questioned, obviously trying to see Adrien somehow. “Hey Dragon! Howly’s got himself a new boyfriend!” Night Howl’s cheeks burned red with both annoyance and embarrassment and he slammed his communicator onto the table, effectively hanging up on the trapped hero.

“Isaac?” Adrien asked, trying to soothe him. “What happens is you ignore this feeling?”

“People die.”

His bluntness took the blond by surprise and he sat back in his seat. He didn't know what to say.

“Okay, that's it. Let me see.” Plagg said, floating over to Adrien. “Take off your ring and give it to Night Howl.” 

“What?”

“No. I don't need you in my head.”

The cat narrowed his eyes at the wolf. “Canaa, if you would help me?”

In a moment Night Howl was back to Isaac and Canaa floated away from him. “Isaac, Plagg is the Kwami of destruction. He can help you.”

Both teens were obviously against the notion, but Isaac was surprised when Adrien took off his Miraculous and held it out to him. “It's not like it's forever, right? What's being a cat for a few minutes?”

Isaac sighed and took the ring from Adrien’s palm and slid it onto one of his fingers. He could instantly feel the other Kwami’s power inside of him and without a word he transformed into a much darker version of Chat Noir. His hair had fluffed up, a feline mask covered his eyes, and the outfit was more reminiscent of a melanistic lion than a slick house cat.

“That’s so cool.” Adrien stated, grinning widely. “Can I have that outfit when you’re done?” Isaac laughed a bit and shrugged. “Don’t think it works that way.” He replied, closing his eyes.

He searched within himself trying to find the root of the heavy feeling, mentally following Plagg through a maze of his own thoughts. A black bird flew by and he flinched a bit, physically frowning as they continued. They dug deeper and deeper until they stopped at a small ball of darkness.

“ _ This must be the problem. I think this is your link to Panyaa. _ ” Plagg said as he floated around it. “ _ He must be getting ready to make an Akuma somewhere. _ ” He said reaching for the orb.

“ _ No don’t touch it! _ ” Isaac yelled mentally, forcing the Kwami from him and detransforming instantly. “Never touch the link.” He stated, pulling the ring off and giving it back to Adrien. “I don’t know what this feeling is but it’s not good. We should go search the city. I’ll have my friends patrol as well. If something’s going to happen then it’s going to happen soon.”

The blond teen gave Isaac a concerned look as he slipped his ring back on, summoning Plagg back out since Isaac had reject him. Neither teen finished their breakfast, and it was wasted as Isaac dumped it into the trash. He was in the kitchen when his phone rang from the other room, and Adrien brought it to him. “Dragonwing.” He said, holding it out to him to show the picture of Tristain that was on the screen.

“Tris?” Isaac asked, worry clear in his voice as he answered the call.

“Isaac,” A voice spoke on the other side of the phone, “I wanted to tell you that everything is fine. Things are no more crazy here than they normally are. Bec just has a way of making things far more dramatic than they need to be.”

The auburn-haired teen let out a relieving sigh. “Oh thank God everything’s okay.” He said, placing a hand on his still twisting stomach.

“That doesn’t mean things are okay where you are. If he’s there, and he knows you’re looking for him… Isaac it’s dangerous. You need to be careful and you need to make sure that Chat Noir, Ladybug, and the others are ready.”

“Tris there are no others. It’s just them. Just the two of them. What am I supposed to do?”

“You’ll just have to get them ready because he’s going to rain hell down upon the city. You know him best. You’ll figure it out.” The voice explained. “Now, stop your moping. You don’t have time to be a baby.” There was a pause. “Oh, and before I forget. Stop skipping school. You’ll make us look bad if you start failing and they’ll bring you home early. Don’t skip school unless you absolutely have to. And being homesick isn’t a good excuse.”

Before he had a chance to reply the call ended and all he could do was stare at it. “Well,” he started, smiling a bit. “that certainly gives me mixed feelings about everything.” He sighed and went back to the table, turning on the television and finding the news.

“ _...School has been evacuated… no sign of Ladybug or Chat Noir… _ ” Both he and Adrien’s heads snapped up to the TV screen, eyes wide as they watched in horror as their school blazed with fire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a plot written out... but it doesn't seem that my brain wants to follow it? I have no idea what's going to happen next.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot has happened since I went on hiatus. Honestly, I was working on this chapter in progress since August, but everything that happened with my Kwami being stolen and then some pet deaths... It's been a rough few months. But I finally got this chapter done! I hope you enjoy!

* * *

Both teens scrambled, transforming simultaneously and leaping out of the window. “What if Ladybug was in the school? What if she’s trapped!” Night Howl called to the feline as they rushed. “We’ll just have to get her out then!” Chat replied. How could he have missed the smell of smoke? How could they have missed the sirens that rang through the city. When they reached the building, which wasn’t very far away, the heat was intense.

“Chat, we have to get inside!” The wolf called. Chat nodded in reply and swung his staff into one of the windows, bolting inside, Night Howl right on his tail. The teen pulled his scarf over his mouth, and fixed his hood. “Canaa, give me some eye protection.” He said, and his hood formed into a wolf mask that covered the rest of his face. “Chat, you go that way, I’ll go this way!” He called, bolting on all fours and running through the blazing building.

He could hear screams of kids in the building. It was bad. People could die and he knew it was the work of Crow. He let out a growl and raced to one of the rooms that was blocked off, kicking in the door. “This way! Let’s go!” He yelled, usuring the teens into the hallway. “Stay together! I’ll get you out, don’t worry.” He added, releasing his bolas and busting out another window. Once the claws of his bola were firmly latched onto the windowsill, he tossed a portion of the rope down to the ground. The building was but two stories, but he still wanted the teens to be safe. “Cover your hands and slide down. Hurry!” He instructed, and one by one each of the teens, his schoolmates, made is safely out of the building.

He continued his search. Each classroom he checked. Each nook and cranny until he heard a scream. A familiar one. “Ladybug!” He ran forward, hopping the railing to the first floor and through all the smoke he saw it. A large bird, black as night, clutching the spotted heroine by the neck.

“Crow let her go!” He yelled, heart pounding in his ears. The bird laughed.

“Why would I do that?” It asked, its head lowering its head. “Without her you can do _nothing_ . Without her you are _nothing_.”

“You’re wrong!” Chat Noir leaped into the scene. “Night Howl is a great hero. He’s even braver than me sometimes!”

“Chat we’ve got no time to waste. We have to get Ladybug.” Night Howl replied behind his mask.

The bird laughed loudly and tightened his grip. “Times running out for your little girlfriend. You boys better hurry.”

“ _Chat, listen to me. Crow knows everything about me, and he’s been here long enough to know how you move and strategize. We’re going to have to pull something fast if this is going to work.”_

_“I’ll worry about how you can talk inside my head later, what’s your plan?”_

_“Aim your cataclysm at Crow. When you get close to him he’ll dodge. The best thing is to be unpredictable. When he moves away do something crazy.”_

_“That sounds like a terrible plan!”_

_“I know it does! That’s the point.”_

The two boys glanced at each other for a moment before splitting up suddenly. The sound of Chat calling for his cataclysm made Crow look the other way while Night Howl activated his own special power.

His eyes glazed over with pure instinct. The only thought in his head before the activation was retrieving Ladybug, and he would do anything to get her back. Chat’s cataclysm proved to be an effective distraction, if only for a moment as Night Howl latched himself to Crow’s forearm, sinking wolf teeth deep into his flesh.

In an instant, the bird released the girl to attempt to pry the feral hound off of himself. Once Ladybug was let go, the wolf himself released the bird and dove to catch the heroine. The building was still on fire and she was plummeting right for it. Night Howl managed to grab onto Ladybug, pulling her as close against himself as he possibly could to shield her from the impending impact.

 

_Isaac. Isaac wake up. Please Isaac, wake up!_

The faint voice of someone talking to him, begging him to wake up roused him from his deep sleep. “Ladybug?” He murmured, opening his eyes slowly, straining from the light that was too bright.

“Isaac!” The voice said as someone threw themselves against him, causing him to groan from the sudden impact.

“Marinette, calm down, let him rest.” Alya’s voice spoke. It was when Marinette pulled away that he realised where he was.

“Why am I in the hospital?” The teen questioned suddenly.

“You fell and hit your head when the school caught fire a few days ago.” Alya replied, raising an eyebrow.

“But I didn’t go to school-” A sudden jab in the side from Marinette stopped him from speaking.

“You walked me to school, don’t you remember? We were waiting for Adrien in the front and ended up being late and when the school caught fire you ran in to help and somehow you fell.” Marinette explained, Alya looking less than amused.

“Are you seriously still going with that story?” She questioned, crossing her arms. “Isaac and Adrien never showed up at school that day and you were late _as always_.”

“Whatever happened, I don’t care.” Isaac lied. “I’m just glad it’s over.” A blatant lie. He knew it was far from over. The Morrígan targeted Ladybug and Chat Noir. He targeted the school and put everyone in danger.

“Yeah, even though it’ll be a while before we can all go back to school.” The raven haired girl replied.

“That just leaves me more time to film Ladybug and Chat Noir, and get to know that new hero that’s been slinging around with them. Night Howl, I think it was.” Alya stated, pulling her phone out and showing both Isaac and Marinette a snapshot of the wolf hero. Isaac’s pulse increased as he looked at the image, Night Howl holding onto Ladybug,falling from the sky.

“Alya, I think we should let him rest.” Marinette said, speaking up in concern. “He just woke up after all.”

Alya frowned a bit and shrugged. “Alright, you and I can finally go shopping together.” She said, making her way out of the room.

“Marinette, what really happened?” The injured teen questioned.

“You landed really hard when you saved me. When Morrígan disappeared Chat found us in the school. He pulled us but you’d lost a lot of blood.” He could see her tears welling up and he reached out to touch her hand. “Chat didn’t have a lot of time but he waited for help to come. When I woke up I stayed with you while he left.”

“Has he been here?” He asked.

“I’m not sure. I haven’t seen him in a few days.”

“Not even Ladybug has seen him?”

Marinette shook her head. “No. Thankfully there haven’t been any akumas lately.”

All Isaac could do was nod. “Alright,” he said, giving a smile. “You should go before Alya comes back to scold you.”

The girl gave a small laugh and nodded. “I’ll be back tomorrow, okay? I’ll even bring some muffins.”

Once Marinette left the room all he could do was sigh and lean his head back.Crow had tried to kill Ladybug, he tried to kill everyone in the school. He hadn’t been there that long but he knew that if he and the others didn’t get things under control that Hawkmoth wouldn’t be the one they needed to worry about. He let out another sigh and sat up in his bed, not wanting to stay in bed any longer. He didn’t mind hospitals, but his legs felt stiff and he wanted to move around. He pushed the call button on the side of the bed hoping one of the nurses would come to his room quickly.

His wish was granted as a nurse entered the room, smiling when she saw him awake and alert. “Good evening, Isaac.” She spoke, glancing at her clipboard. “It’s good to see you awake. The doctor will be with you soon, we notified her when your friends left and told us you had woken up. Are you feeling well? You had quick the knock on the head.”

Isaac gave a slight smile and nodded. “Yes, I’m feeling alright. My legs are a bit stiff though, could I get unhooked from all this so I can walk around?”

The nurse smiled and nodded. “Once the doctor gives the clear we’ll see what we can do. Until then, you think you can sit in bed?”

He gave a slight defeated nod and leaned back against the bed once more, watching as the nurse left the room.

“Of course. I hope they told mom I’m alright. I really don’t want her coming all the way over here.” He said, talking to himself. It took nearly an hour before the doctor came in to do an examination on him. She checked his head, making sure his staples were intact, making Isaac realize that they had to shave part of his hair to reach the wound. The rest of his hair, however, was long enough to cover it, which he was quite thankful for, but until it healed he couldn’t exactly cover it up all the way.

“Alright, Isaac,” the doctor started, smiling at him warmly. “Your injuries are healing quite well and you’re stable. Unfortunately we can’t discharge you unless you have a legal adult sign for you.”

The teen’s heart sank. “But I live here by myself. My mother’s back in America.” He explained.

“Without a guardian, we can’t rightfully discharge you since you’re a minor.” She replied, writing things down on the papers clipped in the clipboard. “Is there anyone in the city that can sign for you?”

Isaac frowned, looking down at his lap to think. “I suppose,” he started, looking back up at the doctor. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng’s parents. The ones that own the bakery near the school.”

With a nod the doctor left the room and he was left by himself once more.

“Tough luck on that one.” Chat said, climbing through the window. “In the meantime, I’ve got something of yours.” The cat made his way over and held out a necklace, Isaac’s necklace to be exact.”I’m pretty sure he’s been complaining this whole time, but I can’t hear him.”

The teen chuckled and retrieved the necklace, slipping it over his head, careful of any wires, and released the kwami that was held inside.

“Isaac you’re okay!” Canaa said excitedly, hugging the boy as hard as he could.

“Of course I am. You think a fall like that would do me in?” He replied, petting the small wolf.

“It almost did.” Chat stated, arms crossed. “I know we haven’t known each other for long, but that doesn’t mean you’re not my friend.”

Isaac nodded. “I can say the same. I’ll try to be more careful though. Wolf Bite doesn’t exactly leave me any room for common sense. I just do things.” He explained.

The feline sighed and shook his head. “Don’t go dying on us, alright? We don’t know how to get Crow back then.” The other teen pulled his legs up, sitting cross legged on the bed, giving Chat room to sit down.

“Ladybug was here a while ago. Well… not exactly Ladybug.” He said, smiling. “She was pretty worried about me.”

“She’s a worrier.” The blond replied with a solemn smile. “She was pretty upset when she realised you were hurt so bad. She tried to fix the damage with her Lucky Charm, but with no akuma the Miraculous Ladybug doesn’t work. The school is pretty damaged too.”

“No school for a while then, right?” The Brunette questioned, watching as the hero made himself comfortable on the bed.

Chat shrugged. “I don’t know, what I do know is that my dad will be trying to lock me up in the house again saying that it’s not safe for me to leave.” He sighed. “He thinks I was there after all. It was difficult to explain that I was in the school and was saved, but no one saw me there. I think I’ve dug myself a hole.”

The two were silent for a moment before laughing. They couldn’t handle keeping it together any more and for some reason the thought of Chat’s father holding him hostage just made things hilarious. It was probably due to Adrien being a secret superhero beloved by all of Paris.

“Thanks for visiting, Chat.” Isaac said once they had calmed down enough to talk. “I really needed it. Honestly, I hope Marinette’s parents can come get me discharged, I’m really tired of sitting here.”

The cat gave a wide grin. “I’m sure they’ll come through. They’re very kind people. They’ll probably fret over you if you don’t agree to stay with them at least for a few days. So good luck with that. I’d offer you a room at my place, but I don’t think my father would allow something like that.”

The teen shook his head in understanding. “It’s alright. I’ll deal. Besides, if I stay at Marinette’s it just means I get to eat a lot of amazing food!” He replied, laughing again, causing Chat Noir to laugh as well.

“Isaac,” Marinette’s voice sounded, Chat jumped off the bed and scrambled towards the window, but it was too late. “I didn’t know you knew Chat Noir.” She lied, trying to look surprised.

“Oh well, yeah. I mean, he helped save me after all.” The boy replied, grinning awkwardly.

“Y-Yeah. I just wanted to check on him is all. So no worries! I have to go now though. Um… both of you stay out of trouble okay?”

“That cat.” The girl exasperated, hands on her hips once Chat had escaped out of the window. “Anyway,” she started, looking at Isaac. “I’ve brought you some clothes so you can change, my parents are working on filling out your release forms.” she said, placing the bag of clothes on the edge of the bed. “They said they wanted you to stay with us until you’re feeling better. Well,” she paused. “Actually we’d all like it if you stayed at the bakery.” Her cheeks flushed pink as she spoke.

A wolfish smirk grew across Isaac’s face. “Worried about me little Bug?” He questioned, getting out of bed and pulling the clothes out of the bag. He was pleased that there was everything he needed inside, even underwear. “You going to turn around, or am I going to change with you watching?” The dark-haired girl blushed furiously and spun around, covering her eyes for extra measure as Isaac changed behind her. “Alright,” He spoke, sitting back on the bed. “All ready to go aside from being hooked up to things.”

Marinette was hesitant to look, peeking behind her through her fingers. “I’m sure the nurse will be here soon to help with that.” She replied.

And she was right, the nurse was there rather quickly, getting him unhooked from everything, putting a bandage over where the IV was inserted. He was given instructions on how to wash the wound on his head, stating that if he needed help to ask for it and to be careful with brushing his hair. He did his best to remember everything, but he noticed that Marinette was writing everything down in her notebook. Once all instruction was given, he was allowed to leave with Marinette and her parents, more than happy to be leaving the hospital.

 

Walking into the hallway of the bakery was strange as he knew it was going to be his home for the next week or so. Tom had told him that he was more than welcome to make himself at home but it just didn’t seem quite right. He even offered to sleep on the couch, but Marinette insisted that he sleep in her room. To his surprise, both Sabine and Tom allowed this and soon he was laying on the chaise lounge trying to figure out how he was going to sleep there without falling off.

“Sorry I don’t have anything else you can sleep on.” Marinette said, sitting in her desk chair.

“It’s alright, I’ve slept in stranger places.” He replied, reeling back suddenly. “Not that this is strange or anything! I mean it is strange, but not in a bad way!”

His verbal stumbling got a laugh out of the girl and she relaxed a bit. “I’m really glad you’re okay. And I’m glad Chat got Canaa back to you. We both thought it best to take your Miraculous when you went to the hospital, just in case.” She explained.

Isaac smiled at her and reached up, touching the necklace he wore around his neck. “I’m glad you did. I wouldn’t want anything happening to him.”

“Well,” Marinette said, standing. “I’d better get you some extra blanket and a proper pillow. I can also get you those muffins I promised you!”

The teen was happy to know that he was going to be well taken care of. While he felt like a burden, he didn’t feel that Marinette minded one bit. It actually helped him relax and he curled up with the slightly uncomfortable decorative pillow that sat on the lounge. Despite his head not hurting, he was still tired, and took the opportunity to sleep. He could have some muffins later when he woke up. Plus, he didn’t think Marinette would mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was mostly mild because I felt like too much depression was just well... too much. It's about time someone got hurt. Anyway, I'll try to have the next chapter up sooner. Also, I spent time trying to figure out if minors can discharge themselves from hospitals in France and caved and just used the normal "Guardian needs to discharge them" thing. It was difficult because while being an exchange student, he doesn't exactly have an exchange family to be his guardians, guess Tom and Sabine will take up that roll now. :D


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I spent a little too long on formatting the damn texts in this chapter. Please enjoy.  
> I took the indent code out of my work skin because the indent in the text messages just drove me nuts. Oh well.

There was an insistent beeping that rang through the room. Isaak couldn't place what it was or where it was coming from but it was damn annoying. He groaned and sat up from where he slept. Marinette had given him a pillow and covered him with a few thin blankets at some point and he couldn't help but smile. She was such a sweet girl. The beeping continued and his eyes searched around for it only to see a phone on his host's desk. His phone. He forced himself up, making his way over to the noisy object, turning it on silent the moment he reached it. There were many missed calls. His mother was the one that called but one stood out to him. 

_Tristain._ His mind spoke and he opened his messages. All his messages to and from Tristain stared him in the face, even the ones from just before he left for France.

I'm okay  
  


The text was simple but he felt himself grow nervous when the message was delivered and his gut clenched when it changed to read.

We were all worried. Your mom said you were in the hospital.  
  


Of course, she had told them. He shouldn't have been surprised, but he was. He wasn't even sure what to say to that. He knew his friends were now worried about him, even more than they were before but there wasn't much he could do. He had to be there. They all knew it.

I was, but I'm fine. Just a bump on the head is all.  
  
Was it Crow?  
  


Once again, he shouldn't have been surprised but it's been a busy week.

Isaac. Should I call? No.  
  


He knew he wouldn't have been able to hold himself together talking on the phone. He didn't trust his voice and he didn't want to wake Marinette if she was asleep in her loft.

It was Crow. He tried to kill everyone in the school. He almost killed Ladybug.  
  


His mind replayed the image in his head. Ladybug lifeless as she hung in the Mórrígan’s hands.

It's okay now. Is she okay?  
  
She's fine. Just worried about me.  
  
You make us worry too much.  
  
I'm sorry.  
  
Don't be. It's just you. I'll let everyone know that you're okay.  
  
Thank you.  
  


The teen set the phone down after sending his mother a fast text telling her that he’s fine and staying with a friend. He didn’t bother to wait for her reply, he didn’t want it really. He didn’t even want her to know he was injured. He stopped at the bottom of the ladder to Marinette’s bed and looked up, noticing the hatch was open. It was late, around 3 am. If Ladybug had been out patrolling she should’ve closed the door. Silently he climbed the stairs, looking at the girl’s empty bed before peering up through the opening in the ceiling. There was still a slight ashy smell to the air.

“Mari?” He questioned, his voice quiet as he pulled himself through the open hatch.

“Isaac!” She seemed startled and rushed over to help him through, giving him that sweet smile that she always wore.

“What are you doing out here so late?” The injured teen asked, taking a seat on the pink striped chair she had on her balcony.

“I couldn’t sleep.” She replied, going back to lean against the railing, looking out at the city. “You looked in pain as you slept too. I don’t know, there’s just so much going on.”

Isaac’s amber eyes watched her as he tried to relax in the chair. “Everything’s going to be fine. Once we get Crow things will go back to normal. Then the only problems you’ll have to worry about is Hawkmoth and dating Adrien.” 

He didn’t have to see Marinette’s face to know that she’d just turned several shades of red. The way she stiffened was enough.

“Is Chat pawtrolling tonight?” The boy asked, changing the subject, grinning a bit when the blue-eyed girl spun around quickly.

“Did you just make a cat pun?” She queried, eyes narrowing.

“Purrhaps I did. But cats aren’t the only ones who have paws. They’re more fun though.”

“I cannot believe you. You two are going to end me.” She flung her hands up as she spoke, facepalming as she shook her head. “What am I even going to do with you two?”

“Love us and give us belly rubs?” Isaac replied with a wide grin.

“Absolutely not.”

“Please?”

“No.”

The two laughed a bit and settled down after a few moments as a siren rang through the air. They watched the lights of a police car go down the street and while they both had the urge to follow, they knew that Chat would investigate if he hadn’t already been there. 

“You should get some sleep, Mari. You should be relaxing on your nights off.” Isaac spoke, breaking their silence.

“I’ll be alright. It’s not like we have to go to school tomorrow.” She said, gesturing to the burnt building across the street.

The building was still standing, at least most of it was anyway, but he could tell it would take some time before they could get it rebuilt.

“So much for me being a foreign exchange student. I can’t be a student if there’s no school.”

“The administration said they would figure something out, but until then all our assignments are on our tablets.” 

The two fell into silence once again and Isaac could feel his eyes getting heavy. Despite not being in any pain he did still have a head injury and it was no wonder that he was tired. He wanted to stay up with Marinette though. He didn’t want to leave her alone or perhaps it was because he didn’t want to fall asleep by himself. Would it be so improper for him to sleep in Marinette’s bed? He didn’t get to make a decision, however, as he woke with the sunlight on his face as it rose over the buildings of Paris. He’d fallen asleep on the balcony. 

He was a little wobbly as he stood, and peeked down in the bedroom below, seeing that Marinette wasn’t in her bed, he eased himself down, careful of his head, and then made his way to the kitchen. It was empty. Was Marinette not home? Had something happened? Was there an Akuma? His mind raced for a moment until he realized Canaa and Tikki were sitting on the counter eating.

“Where’s Marinette?” The two Kwami looked up at him as he spoke.

“In the bakery. She wanted to help her parents while she was home.” Tikki explained, floating up and behind the teen. He could feel the little kwami push his hair out of the way to examine the wound on his head, which stung a bit as she brought his attention to it. “We need to get this cleaned. You should start a bath and relax. I could get Marinette and she could help you.”

Isaac shook his head slightly. “Don’t bother Mari with little things like that. It’s fine if you two help me. Besides, I don’t think she wants to see me naked.”

The little bug kwami giggled a bit and nodded in understanding. Canaa let out a small chuckle too as the two of them led the teen through the hall and to the bathroom. It was a cute bathroom, Marinette’s parents must’ve really enjoyed their daughter’s designs. He could see her creative mark all over their home. 

Tikki prepared the bath, hot and steamy, but not too hot to burn him. She smiled a bit as she tossed in a bath bomb, watching it fizz as it sank in the water. As curious as Isaac was, he didn’t ask. He just let Tikki prepare the bath while he carefully undressed. He’d known that he had more injuries than just his head, that being the worst, but he could feel the bruises on his body. The injuries that Canaa couldn’t stop when they had hit the ground. Looking in the half mirror above the sink he saw how tired he was. Dark bags under his eyes, bruises on his shoulders and arms. His body was littered with scars from past fights as well.

“You’ve been through so much.” Tikki spoke, floating over to him as she finished getting the bath ready. “I’ll never understand why Darnner’s team always seems to be the ones going against the most dangers.” 

“Because, little bug,” Isaac started, cupping his hands beneath the spotted kwami and brought her close, lightly pressing his forehead against her’s. “Darnner’s team keeps your team alive.” His voice was low, pulling away after a moment to step in and sink himself into the steaming water. 

Tikki floated in silence before she sat on the teen’s knee. “How many has your team lost?” 

Isaac shook his head. “Just Crow to the darkness. The team before us, though. They didn’t make it. Darnner doesn’t like to talk about it but whatever it was left the previous team mangled. I don’t know how long ago it was but he holds the burden close to him.”

“All kwami know what it feels like to lose their wielder.” Canaa spoke, sitting on Isaac’s other knee. “We’ve all lost them. All we can do is move on and try harder to keep you all safe the next time.”

“Canaa’s right. Plagg has one of the worst records among all of us. As does Panyaa and Canaa.” 

“I’m not going to lose Crow.” Isaac replied, nearly knocking both kwami into the water from his jolt. “I’m not going to let him go like that. I’m not giving up.”

“Isaac, we didn’t mean—” Canaa stopped Tikki from speaking, shaking his head as he touched her. She sighed and floated up, taking a loofah from a basket on the shelf near the tub. “Right, let’s get you cleaned up. The Epsom salt in the bath bomb will ease any pains you have and help with the bruising. So just relax.” 

The change of subject already helped him relax and he sat there, eyes closed as Tikki and Canaa helped one another scrub the teen’s wounds. When it came time to wash his hair he was a bit nervous but allowed the kwami to care for him.

“Hey Tikki, may I ask you something?” Isaac asked, getting his mind off of the sting the shampoo brought to his wound. The little kwami hummed in response. “Why haven’t you and Plagg taught Ladybug and Chat Noir about their other gifts?” 

Tikki paused for a moment. “They’re not ready. I’ve never told Marinette about the full extent of her miraculous because she’s never needed them. However, with Crow around, I’m going to have to start teaching her.”

“Normally Darnner’s team is older than Tikki’s and Plagg’s.” Canaa explained. “With the maturity that comes with the age of the wielder comes a better understanding of the Miraculous. That’s how Hawkmoth creates so many Akuma. Nooroo won’t share the more important things but all kwami know their own abilities. Panyaa may have told Crow but we can’t be sure. In any case, it the wielder’s kwami doesn’t think they’re ready then they have the right to not share the more advanced abilities with them.”

“I think it’s time that Isaac learns the truth, Canaa.” Tikki spoke as she carefully scrubbed the boy’s hair around the wound.

“Tikki…” The wolf kwami couldn’t stop the little ladybug from speaking.

“There are kwami stationed across the world. There are the seven in America, that’s your team, there are the seven from Ladybug’s team, and then the zodiac, another twelve.” Tikki explained, “Ladybug and Chat Noir, the miraculous of creation and destruction, are the two most important ones. Their guardians are the Butterfly, Fox, Turtle, Bee and the Peacock. Darnner’s team has a dynamic. The Dragonfly, which symbolizes harmony. The Wolf for loyalty which is why both are counterparts to Ladybug and Chat Noir.”

Canaa, who already knew all this, focused on rinsing out Isaac’s hair, making sure to rinse all the shampoo out to not irritate the stitches. “The four are the most powerful and when brought together then something major is going to happen.”

Tikki nodded in response. “Next we have the rest of Darnner’s team. The Mantis, for patience. The Tiger, courage. The snake, guidance. The Firefly, illumination. Finally, the Crow. It may seem that the crow is bad luck or misfortune, but that’s not the case at all. In fact, Panyaa is the holder of prophecy.” 

“He knew this was going to happen, didn’t he? That’s why he chose Koa over me.” Isaac’s eyes went wide at the realization. “How, how could he have stayed quiet about this? How come he didn’t let us help him‽” He knew his voice was a little louder than it should’ve been. He knew that there was a possibility that Marinette and her parents had just heard him. He knew this but he didn’t care. “Panyaa was my responsibility and I failed him. I chose Koa. I failed them both.” 

“Isaac you didn’t fail anyone!” Canaa spoke, trying to lift his wielder’s head with his little hands.

“He’s right,” Marinette’s voice sounded from the other side of the bathroom door. “You haven’t failed anyone. You saved my life. You saved all those people’s lives.” She spoke, turning the handle and opening the door. 

“Marinette…”

She didn’t seem the slightest bit embarrassed that Isaac was naked or in the bath or anything. She simply shut the door behind her, walked over, and hugged him against her, careful not to push on the stitches.

“You don’t have to carry this burden alone.” She said, pulling away to look at the foreigner. “You have Chat and me. You have Canaa, Tikki and Plagg, and everyone back home. If you need someone to talk things out with, then don’t hold it in anymore. Talk to us. We’ll listen and we’ll help you.”

Isaac nodded, unsure of what to say other than ‘thank you’ to the girl who’d just barged into the bathroom, hugged him against her breasts, and managed to calm him down like he was a child. It was all so much to take in but he was tired of being depressed and having his hope abandoned. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly don't know why it took me so long to post this chapter, or even finish it really. But I'm glad it's done and omg the text message format drives me CRAZY. It's simple enough but it's just tedious. Needless to say, I might just have them call one another next time.
> 
> On another note, NO MORE DEPRESSION TRAIN. If I can help it. I'll try to get work on the next chapter soon.


End file.
